E.On Next compensation

angelahorn

I've had a saga with E.On Next where they suddenly tried to back-bill me for £9,000 that they claimed was due to a prior adjustment going back to 2021.  Now they've conceded they were wrong and we're haggling over compensation.  After telling me I owed them £9k, they said they were putting my monthly direct debit up to over £1,000.  I knew this couldn't be right as my energy use has been steady or declining for years and I always provide meter reads.  When I queried I got quite a few emails full of platitudes about knowing it must be a shock to receive a big bill and call them if I was having trouble, so I raised a complaint. They eventually provided their figures and adjusted bills, and it was immediately obvious what the problem was, as they were basing their starting gas reading on an estimate from a previous supplier before they took over my supply, and that estimate was crazy and bore no relation to meter readings recorded before or after.  It was around 2000 on my gas meter, when I'd been billed for readings over 5000 the year before.  Initially E.On Next offered me £50 compensation and asked if they could close my complaint. I said no, because they had caused me so much stress and extra work, which could easily have been avoided if they'd flagged large back-bills for a human check before sending them out.  They just keep saying it was the previous supplier's error and not their fault, but surely they should carry out a basic common sense test and get a person to look at an account before hitting people with bills that high?

Now they've raised the offer to £100 and keep asking if I will accept this and can they close the complaint.  I just wondered what others would advise.  Thank you.

caprikid1

What loss have you suffered ? How many hours wasted resolving ?

angelahorn

That's a sensible question - I wish I had logged the hours I spent chasing this.  I would guess I have spent about 10 hours on it, but the stress has been considerable.  Although nowhere near as bad as that suffered by some others on this forum, I note. But I feel that the more of us who hold these providers to account, the more they will hopefully listen in future.  

Rodders53

Ask for what you feel is a sensible sum... £150, £200, £1,000... and see if they'll pay.

If you want to rub their nose in it (and potentially cut your own off to spite your face)... ask them for a deadlock letter and take it to the Ombudsman who may pay you more, or less, than their current offer. That will cost EoN the Ombudsman fees which can range "up to £650" on top of any compensation.

10 hours of angst at National Minimum Wage is £122 less tax and NI.

Brie

I quite agree that a human doing a sense check would be completely expected.  It would save them so much time and trouble.  I'd be wanting to give them a good kicking for being such ninnies.  I like the idea of asking for a deadlock letter but I might simply say "I wouldn't consider closing the complaint for at least double what you've offered!"  (aka £200, for them being so stupid.)

Swipe

Brie said:

I quite agree that a human doing a sense check would be completely expected.  It would save them so much time and trouble.  I'd be wanting to give them a good kicking for being such ninnies.  I like the idea of asking for a deadlock letter but I might simply say "I wouldn't consider closing the complaint for at least double what you've offered!"  (aka £200, for them being so stupid.)

That might work. They hate it when you don't agree to them closing the complaint.

luci

Swipe said:

Brie said:

I quite agree that a human doing a sense check would be completely expected.  It would save them so much time and trouble.  I'd be wanting to give them a good kicking for being such ninnies.  I like the idea of asking for a deadlock letter but I might simply say "I wouldn't consider closing the complaint for at least double what you've offered!"  (aka £200, for them being so stupid.)

That might work. They hate it when you don't agree to them closing the complaint.

I had an issue with So Energy not installing a smart meter, despite them inviting me to have one. I got a Goodwill payment of £50 after a few months of fighting with them and they asked if they could close the complaint. I said no, not until the meter was actually installed, but it wasn't. This went on for 22 months. I took them to the Ombudsman, who found in my favour. The meter was eventually installed and the Ombudsman ordered them to pay me £100 compensation. I spent a lot more than 10 hours over the 22 months drafting emails and phoning them. As soon as the meter was installed, I switched away from them.

Alnat1

Personally I'd accept the offer of £100. If the "saga" is causing you such "stress and extra work" I'd have thought you'd want the matter over and done with.

You have to decide if another few months of "considerable stress" is worth it for maybe an extra £50-£100.

angelahorn

Alnat1 said:

Personally I'd accept the offer of £100. If the "saga" is causing you such "stress and extra work" I'd have thought you'd want the matter over and done with.

You have to decide if another few months of "considerable stress" is worth it for maybe an extra £50-£100.

To be honest, it's no longer causing me stress as they have accepted that I am right and they are wrong, and they are no longer chasing me for excess amounts.  It's more to do with trying to make them learn some lessons about how they treat customers, and if I can get some compensation for their stupidity out of that then even better.

angelahorn

Rodders53 said:

Ask for what you feel is a sensible sum... £150, £200, £1,000... and see if they'll pay.

If you want to rub their nose in it (and potentially cut your own off to spite your face)... ask them for a deadlock letter and take it to the Ombudsman who may pay you more, or less, than their current offer. That will cost EoN the Ombudsman fees which can range "up to £650" on top of any compensation.

10 hours of angst at National Minimum Wage is £122 less tax and NI.

I value my time at above minimum wage, for many reasons!  I thought £200 was sensible.  Thanks for explaining what the ombudsman will cost them.  It does sound like more additional time than I'd want to invest.
They've now offered £100 plus a letter of apology and specifically acknowledged the points I made about a human review should be conducted whenever a bill is issued for a large sum or a significantly changed pattern of use, to check for errors.  Who knows if they listen though?

Qyburn

angelahorn said:
I value my time at above minimum wage, for many reasons!  I thought £200 was sensible.

Another reference point is the figure civil courts used for a litigant in person, £18/hour.